Up the Beanstalk – Wilds of Eldraine
Date Reviewed: December 25, 2023
Ratings:
Constructed: 4.25
Casual: 3.63
Limited: 3.75
Multiplayer: 3.50
Commander [EDH]: 4.00
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale: 1 is bad; 3 is average; 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
This card wasn’t on my Top 10 list, but it was on my short list.
Up the Beanstalk took one of the most useful green effects (green creature cantrip) and paired it with a slightly cheaper base rate, universality for all spells that cost enough, and a much higher bar to trigger. Still, you’re basically running this as a two-mana cantrip with late game upside, and the upside starts paying off inn green well before turn 5. It earned a ban in Modern for good reason, and it’s potent enough to give decks a boost in plenty of deeper formats.
Constructed: 4.5
Casual: 3.25
Limited: 3.5
Multiplayer: 3
Commander: 4
David
Fanany
Player
since
1995
This card was #3 on my Top 10 list.
Whenever a new card from a mainline set (one intended for Standard) makes such a big splash in bigger formats, I sit up and take notice. In this case, the card becomes a lot better when you have a format with a bunch of free spells like Fury or even Force of Will (in the right build), but it is actually quite strong when you get to late-game spells the “normal” way that midrange decks do. If you get it in play on your second turn and it sticks around, it can generate enough advantage to put a game out of reach against other casual opponents, especially since it also cantrips. It is shockingly effective and even borderline overpowered in popular casual settings, and I’m surprised and impressed at how such a simple card manages to do that.
Constructed: 4
Casual: 4
Limited: 4
Multiplayer: 4
Commander: 4
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